Saving souls

Mother's ruin

Your investigations lead you to a squalid, malodorous gin parlour near St. Dunstan's church. You don't catch sight of any devils, but from what you can get out of the few gin-soaked locals still in possession of their souls, they have been seen here in recent times. You brave the place long enough to work out where the stash of souls is, and report it to both your employer and the Constables. You don't report the cache of nevercold brass that you find at the back. It's not relevant to the case, is it? You pocket it as recompense.Watchful increase Gain: 30 x Nevercold Brass Sliver Connected: Church increase (1 change point)investigating the Secrets of St Dunstan's increase (1 change point)

Over before it starts

You can't help but think that there is more here than meets the eye. You narrow the search to a small area, but everywhere you turn, your moves have been anticipated and countered. Local tramps have seen nothing. The trail leads to a gin palace - which closes suddenly. The priest at the nearby St Dunstan's gives you a series of leads that go nowhere. You are at a loss.Watchful increaseNightmares increase

Lay out a false trail for a spy

Spies from the surface abound in Fallen London. This one in particular has been getting results, and needs to be led astray.Unlocked with Watchful 44No longer available at Watchful 59

A trail of breadcrumbs

A scandalous secret whispered here, an intriguing document carelessly left there. This will be interesting.
(Watchful challenge; straightforward at 53)

"It's all happening in the prison!"

The false trail that you lay out is both intriguing and plausible. The spy eagerly listens to your lies and rushes to the next item on the trail with gusto. A few days of this, and the spy is convinced that there's a cabal of orientals and churchmen running Fallen London from a secret lair in New Newgate Prison. The spy rushes back to the surface to report her findings, and you are paid as agreed.Watchful increase Gain: 48 x Silk ScrapConnected: Great Game increase

Blushing at your observations

You lay out a trail of dead-drops, meetings and and assignations. But what's this? You set up the meeting to ensure your spy would be alone. But she's with someone. And they're… Good Lord! Does her mother know she does that sort of thing?Watchful increase Gain: 9 x Romantic Notion

Spies spying upon the spies

The false trail that you lay out is both intriguing and plausible. The spy eagerly listens to your lies and rushes to the next item on the trail with gusto. A few days of this, and the spy is convinced that there's a cabal of orientals and churchmen running Fallen London from a secret lair in New Newgate Prison. The spy rushes back to the surface to report her findings. Unfortunately, a week later another half-dozen spies arrive to follow up her investigations! Your employers are far from pleased.Watchful increaseNightmares increase

A night of hinted horrors

You tour the warehouse every hour with a candle. There are crates made of bone that weep at your approach, instruments of torment imported from Italy, huge hissing vats of hydrogen, and a red-lit room full of squirming hessian sacks.

A fresh consignment of souls, borne by two cloaked men, arrives on the stroke of midnight. Their eyes gleam beneath the brims of unnaturally tall hats. You are relieved when the morning comes.Watchful increase Gain: 49 x Nevercold BrassConnected: Hell increase

This is no place for a snooze

Despite the persistent sobbing and shrieks from the soul cages, your eyelids soon begin to droop. In your dreams the Unterzee boils and the roof squirms with pale wormish creatures. You are woken by the irritated foregoat and dismissed without payment.Watchful increaseNightmares increase

Scrutinise infernal contracts

The Brass Embassy is so tangled in paperwork that Hell itself is recruiting temporary staff to handle the backlog. [Unlocked with Watchful 47]

Disentangle the red tape

A bespectacled devil locks you into a stifling, windowless room, stacked with reams of ribbon-tied parchment. Well, it looks like parchment. Somewhat oily parchment, perhaps, and occasionally tattooed.

It is grim work, but fascinating. Who knew there were so many evildoers in the world? And that so few of them know how to spell? You discover a few intriguing titbits about the private members clubs in Big King Square, and several appalling hushed-up crimes from yesteryear.

Upon your release, you cut a deal with the bespectacled devil to keep these secrets in lieu of payment.Watchful increase Gain: 25 x Cryptic ClueConnected: Hell increase (1 change point)

Hell is other people's handwriting

The combination of horror and extreme petty-mindedness, all rendered in spidery red ink, makes your head swim. There is a burning pain behind your eyes. There's no air in here! You can't breathe! Eventually you are forced to admit defeat. A sniggering succubus from the secretarial pool escorts you to the rear exit.

Industrial espionage!

The constables suspect that stolen goods are moving through the Brass Embassy’s secret export network. They need an eye on the inside. Spying on the dealings of devils is a dangerous occupation. One thing is for sure: if they catch you, they won’t kill you. Not for weeks. [Unlocked with Watchful 50]

Investigate the Embassy warehouses

You've done enough nightwatchman work to earn the foregoat's trust. You'll have the place to yourself tonight…A challenge for your Watchful quality. [straightforward at 59]

Interesting…

Once you are alone, you take a crowbar to the warehouse supplies. Bottles of monkey teeth, brass buttons, a consignment of human ears… all the usual stuff. However, you do come across a large cache of unlicensed souls, no doubt stolen by unscrupulous spirifers. They moan sadly in their little bottles.

The Constables are pleased to hear of your findings, and reward you handsomely.

Rare Success!

Hello, what's this? Hidden deep in the warehouse, beneath a tarpaulin that sticks to your hands like taffy, you discover a pile of boxes marked "PROPERTY OF MR MIRRORS" that don't appear on any manifest. Best not to open them. They growl. This secret is too dangerous for the Constables. But you might find a buyer at the Bazaar.

Investigate the Embassy offices

A valuable clue

You've become friendly with an excitable young succubus from Accounting on the fifth floor, who has a habit of leaving documents in the Embassy refectory. They're coded, of course, but you know enough to glean some useful facts. It seems that the Embassy has a number of particularly nasty spirifers - soul thieves - on the payroll. The Constables will be delighted.

Ouch!

An attempt to rifle through an Embassy filing cabinet goes awry when the damn thing snaps shut on your fingers hard enough to break them. One has to be careful around here. Much of the office equipment is sentient.